Setting a default image on new record in database

What is the type of the UserImage column? If it’s text, what you’re doing should work.

If it’s Media, then you have to give it a Media object, not a text string. Here’s an example of getting a file into a Media object: Accessing .txt asset from client module - #3

You wouldn’t do the get_bytes part of that, you’d just put the entire Media object into your data table field.